In the art of woodworking, it is sometimes necessary to clamp a pair of elements together for assembly thereof, such as by gluing, etc. Typically, the clamps are comprised of a pair of long bars joined by threaded shafts which must be rotated in threaded openings in the bars to adjust the distance between the bars. Such devices are usually very heavy or bulky in order to withstand the forces applied to them and also are usually very expensive because of the machining necessary to thread the shafts and openings. Additionally, large handles must also be machined and secured to the ends of the threaded shafts in order to rotate the shafts.
Other types of clamping devices are found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,042,264, issued Aug. 16, 1977, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,257584, issued Mar. 24, 1981, which include a long rigid bar or rod having a stationary member thereon and a slidable member which is slid or moved along the rod for engaging the workpiece between the stationary member and the movable member. Locking means in the form of a wedge which is forced between the rod and movable member is provided in one device (U.S. Pat. No. 4,042,264), and locking is provided in U.S. Pat. No. 4,257,584 by a threaded shaft rotatable by a ratchet wrench.
As can be seen, these devices are bulky and expensive to manufacture. Additionally, because of their bulky size, the devices can be of only limited use in confined areas. In contrast, applicant has provided a clamping assembly which is compact and not bulky while also being relatively inexpensive to manufacture. To this end, applicant's structure includes a stretchable flexible strap having a work engaging member rigidly secured at one end thereof and a second work engaging member slidably carried on the strap for engaging the workpiece. The principles of the invention utilize the elasticity and deformability of the strap to provide the clamping and locking force.
An adjustable clamp using a flexible extension element is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,076,646, issued Feb. 5, 1963. However, the device of this invention, while using a flexible tension member to apply the clamping force to the faces of a pair of clamp jaws, also requires a reel mounted on a carrier which is reciprocally mounted on a frame. One end of the flexible element is secured to the reel so that it may be wound on the reel while the other end is secured to a clamp jaw. The device does not utilize the ability of a flexible deformable element which, in returning to its original configuration, provides a clamping force, as does applicant.